I’m writing this letter in hopes of getting the government to overturn their decision to not allow church services in person.
This goes against our charter of rights in my opinion. What is the difference if a 12-step meeting can meet in person and follow the COVID-19 protocols and in-person church service where we would like to practice our faith with other members of the church.
I attend the Whistler Community Church here in town and we have followed the COVID-19 protocols since Day 1. Two- to 50-person services with social distancing, wearing a mask at all times, contact tracing, disinfecting in between services. And knock on wood, there hasn’t been an outbreak or exposure from one of our services.
[Sea to Sky MLA] Jordan Sturdy got back to me saying the worship session of the service—meaning the singing—won’t allow us to meet in person because of the amplified sound.
They are behind the plexiglass as well and once again following the protocols. Who makes up these rules?
I know we are not a restaurant or small business making money and trying to survive during the pandemic and even the restaurant industry has done an amazing job to curb the spread. Going to a restaurant makes you feel human again and that’s what I’m requesting to change—being human and meeting with others in the church setting.
And as for the 12-step groups, they need that human contact in person since I feel the ones struggling with addiction and substance issues were forgotten about with a record number of overdose deaths last year in B.C.
If you read this, [Provincial Health Officer Dr.] Bonnie Henry please let us practice our faith in person sooner then later.
Doug Ryan // Whistler
Snowmobile story misses the mark
Dan Falloon’s article on the coming of age of Snowmobiling in Whistler misses the mark badly (“Snowmobiling’s coming of age,” Jan. 22). The sport is quite obviously “evolving,” but not so certainly “as the world is changing.” Nor for overall society is the evolution positive.
Whistler Search and Rescue notes improvement in safety and training: “great.” [Ryan] Nadeau of the Powder Mountain Snowmobile Club notes that he and others appreciate the interests of both motorized and non-motorized users, “fine.”
Falloon might have added that there is considerable overlap of the two groups, but that is a separate issue. He could well have expanded on the disproportionate impact of snowmobiling on the land base, and of the increase in this as machines continue to evolve.
He fails to mention the impact (especially below treeline) on ungulates, black bears, grizzlies, or even the iconic image of wilderness.
But the real failing of this piece is the absence of any mention of the contrary impact of snowmobiles with the stated intentions of our local government, our provincial government, our Centre for Sustainability, to say nothing of the 65 per cent of British Columbians who want to see more climate action.
In appearance, in Whistler and the Sea to Sky corridor, the snowmobiler needs to come equipped with both a machine (or two) and a truck preferably an F-350 or a large RAM. The truck seems to transport the machine to the grocery store, the ski hill parking lots, and back and forth to Whistler from Vancouver.
The carbon footprint of this coupling is both large and unnecessary. I hesitate to shun anyone who loves the outdoors, but truly, if you want to preserve our winters, you must recognize that our greatest local contribution to greenhouse gases comes from internal combustion vehicles, and big crew cabs have a greater impact all around.
Buying a big truck to transport a motor-driven toy is hardly in line with combating climate change. And yes, the “world is changing” and we all need to act.
A real evolution in this sport would be the adoption of electric sleds, transported by electric trucks, (but there would still need to be discussion of the other impacts to the environment, too). Perhaps Dan could update us on this future.
Al Whitney // Whistler
Many thanks to the Whistler Health Care Centre
This is not a COVID moment! This is to assure everyone in the community that the Whistler Health Care Clinic is still functioning as usual despite the COVID-19 pandemic that is raging through the world.
I had a large mole on my back that had changed colour recently. I have fairly compromised skin so this was a concern. I called to speak to my doctor, who was away, and was asked to take a photo and told I would receive a call from a doctor who was filling in.
The call came through at the exact time specified and after some basic questions I had an in-person doctor appointment for the following week. I arrived on time and was immediately taken in to see the doctor who decided that a biopsy was needed. I agreed and the biopsy was done right away.
I was informed that I might have to wait for a couple weeks for the result, but in fact the call came back in under a week. The biopsy was good news but the largish mole had to be removed—this is where my faith in the system usually falls apart.
To book an appointment with a dermatologist is a long and frustrating project involving a referral and a trip to Vancouver. Believe me, I have been down this road before. What a breath of fresh air to hear the words, “I can do the procedure here if you would like? And we will send the whole removal off for a further biopsy to ensure that all of the mole has been removed.”
I “liked” and the process was done at the clinic—five stitches later and I was on my way. The final biopsy came back benign and I just have to wait for the wound to heal. The stitching was top class and the whole process was seamless.
All this took place while Whistler is in the midst of a pandemic, the likes of which the world has not encountered before and one that is putting all of our first responders under huge pressure.
My message is that if you are thinking of putting off that call because you think your problem is not serious enough, please don’t! Virtual appointments are available and follow up if necessary.
My thanks to all at the Whistler Health Care Centre for all that you do for us and continue to do in these difficult and extraordinary times—you are the best!
Alix Nicoll // Whistler
Good gig, even after you resign
Seeing as despite resigning, that [former Governor General] Julie Payette will receive $149,484 yearly for life as a pension and also being entitled to a lifetime expenses of $206,000 per year, I would like to apply to be the next Governor General of Canada please.
If that doesn’t go though, then I will happily accept a position in our unelected Senate for life.
Patrick Smyth // Whistler
Whistler or Blackcomb, today?
We shouldn’t think they’re so different, really. Looking between the mountains, there is a great divide, but not so much of interest. Who doesn’t seem to have a chasm of sorts, between one thing and another, these days? It’s the environment, or the way things were. The internet, or the silent majority. The purpose and the perception would seem to be the same, but we are living in a place where at least it is obvious.
Some love Blackcomb, and some love Whistler. Maybe this year, it is different than last. Maybe our eyes love to linger on the other side, while we stand in line imagining what it’s like over there.
Like life, there is always another side, and it has something to do with why the old system of monarchy seemed to work. There was a way about judgement that was final. No matter how many sides could be seen in an argument, someone else was going to decide.
This democracy thing, hardly ancient but surprisingly energetic, deals us another card. It leaves open the chance to trump even a wild card. We should know now, that sometimes having both in your hand offers a play that could get out of line. But who are we anyway? Just the neighbours. We don’t play by the same rules.
It’s not everyone who can take an adventure from their doorstep, on any given day of the week. Most would find the idea of travel a necessary part of the diversion, and it is proof of how things work in a resort town.
Those who are simply looking out their window, deciding on their own best advice what to do and where to go to seek it, have an advantage over the many who make a point of coming here. It’s why we travel, too, but for different reasons.
Taking the namesake to heart, Whistler Village offers a look into two different worlds, without having to take an extra trip. There are choices here that go beyond our own decision to offer advice on which mountain is best today. Just take a ride up and see, and you will escape the sense of it, the need to answer for a choice.
It will already be on your mind when you wake up. Like having a home far from the toil of work, but close enough to remember it when people arrive to find an escape, answers for a challenge in keeping close the warmth of hospitality. Whether we know it or not, there is no divide between the ways that word finds us. We can welcome it as much as anyone, and find it in the gift of those who return because there is a way to look at two worlds here.
In the offing of an election, there are always those who mask participation with regret. It’s the excitement of the choice we give to illusion too often, when the return of our thinking must be covered up by a loss. As many leaders have failed as would be safe to count to the need of wisdom in keeping attention from wandering too much in the lead-up to candidacy, and so it is often the remembrance of those who try not to push too far.
Democracy will always have a way with our sentiment left to the honesty of that try. It is safely discovered, when the person who we register as first to an effect of representation might actually score well in the promise of greater attention.
It comes from that to a place where the higher causes within a country reach alongside the promise of some well being associated with the character of success, and with the like of any community, a gap forms between the two essential roles charted to measure with personal opinion. The adventure in politics is not made out of answers seen to welcome all sides to the same position, but in how it answers for everyone taking part there is success out of the perception many may be welcomed to answer for it.
Whistler is a perfect model of this example, and it has found consistent growth in a world divided of two. It is possible that will continue, for our world, though it is only 2,000 years or so, since democracy came along. It was meant for cooperation in the early days, and to relieve a sense of burden as it could so easily accumulate to those in power.
The absolutes of reason will never find us all equal, but in owning something of the choice given to allow a sense of the working privilege in government a fair premise acting in favour of wisdom, most find thought of the next election still something to welcome home. It is there we return after all, and our neighbours will probably think twice as time goes by.
They as we, may seem far apart for awhile, but still trying to build a community, just as always.
Roger Duddridge // Victoria
